This is an important aspect of economics that lots of people seem to misunderstand: prices are not determined by costs.
They’re determined by what consumers are willing to pay for your product. That’s it.
The manufacturer sets its price based on what will bring them the most profit, I.e. what the consumers are willing to pay times the number of customers willing to pay it. Notice how cost is a pretty minor factor in that.
Supply and demand has an effect because it reduces the amount consumers are willing to pay (because they can get your product elsewhere)
So your argument that software should charge less based on what it costs them is just a misapprehension of how this works in the economy in general.
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Notes -
This is an important aspect of economics that lots of people seem to misunderstand: prices are not determined by costs.
They’re determined by what consumers are willing to pay for your product. That’s it.
The manufacturer sets its price based on what will bring them the most profit, I.e. what the consumers are willing to pay times the number of customers willing to pay it. Notice how cost is a pretty minor factor in that.
Supply and demand has an effect because it reduces the amount consumers are willing to pay (because they can get your product elsewhere)
So your argument that software should charge less based on what it costs them is just a misapprehension of how this works in the economy in general.
These are logically inconsistent statements. A company that wishes to maximize profit generally seeks to set its output where its marginal cost equals its marginal revenue. When costs change, that point moves, and the price associated therewith changes.
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